


Continuing

by Phrands



Category: Carol (2015)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-19
Updated: 2019-11-19
Packaged: 2021-02-13 09:29:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21492094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phrands/pseuds/Phrands
Summary: A continuation from the end of Carol (2015)
Relationships: Carol Aird & Therese Belivet, Carol Aird/Therese Belivet, Carol Aird/Therese Belivet/Abby Gerhard
Comments: 6
Kudos: 98





	Continuing

Therese continued to follow Carol’s gaze until Carol eventually broke the tension by standing up and beckoning Therese toward her. Therese moved forward, slowly and carefully towards Carol. As Carol gestured to the waiter to set an extra place for her, Therese removed her coat and handed it to the maître d’hôtel who had followed her over. She shyly greeted Carol’s friends who sat around the table and looked mildly bemused by the late addition to the dinner table.  
As Therese lowered herself onto her seat, Carol placed her hand gently on her thigh. Therese initially blushed slightly, but the warm feeling of safe familiarity soon overcame any other emotions. She enjoyed the reassuring touch of Carol’s hand against her leg until the meal arrived. Unbeknownst to Therese, Carol had ordered her the same meal as her own; sautéed radishes with green beans and salmon. Carol gave Therese a quick wink before picking up her knife and fork and beginning to slice the fish. As Therese began her meal, she noticed that she could not feel her heart pounding in her chest for the first time since earlier in the evening when she first sat down for that drink with Carol and laid her eyes on her for the first time in many months.  
The company was wonderful. Carol’s city friends were warm and inviting, just like Carol herself. Moreover, they were interesting and engaging. They asked many questions about Therese’s photography and work with the newspaper. A man Carol simply introduced as ‘Murph’ seemed particularly taken with Therese’s skills and Carol’s praise of her work. He slid a brightly coloured business card over the table to Therese and told her to drop to his studio on the Upper East Side of the city sometime ‘for prattle over some photography prints and equipment’. Therese thanked him graciously, covering her mouth with her right hand, partly to avoid dropping food, partly to hide the huge grin she could feel spreading over her face. Beside Murph sat Pawel Szulc. He jumped to attention when he heard Carol introduce Therese as Miss Therese Belivet. Therese and Pawel discussed their shared Czech heritage briefly. He had gentle eyes and an affable smile that encouraged Therese to divulge more of her personal history than she usually would. He and Murph were partners, Therese deducted. She recognised that they shared the same careful glances as she and Carol and it warmed her heart to see their sweet interactions over dinner. Finally, between Pawel and Carol sat Alice Brackenburg, who was making quick work of the gin and tonics that the familiar waiter kept delivering quietly to her. Her wild ice-blue eyes matched her frizzy blonde-grey hair and sharp, sassy tongue. Therese felt intimidated by her initially, but the longer the spent at the dinner table with Alice, Therese could gather that she was a humorous, intelligent and fiercely loyal lady. Despite the various tangents that accompanied Alice’s stories, Therese gathered that she, along with Abby, has helped Carol get settled in Manhattan. She had found her apartment through an old lover and put Carol in touch with the interior designer that owned the furniture store Carol was working in. Therese felt engaged and inspired for the first time in a long time. The party she had abandoned to return to Carol just a few short hours earlier felt like a million years ago. She felt at home.  
Once dinner had ended, Therese stood outside trying desperately to light a cigarette. The cool weather had brought a blustery breeze with it and she wasn’t having much luck with the lighter. Carol finished saying her goodbyes with light hugs and air kisses to her friends. She walked over to Therese and took the lighter from her hand and the cigarette from her mouth. With an ease only someone as composed as Carol could, she placed the cigarette to her red lips, lifted her gloved hands to her face and lit the cigarette. She took a deep drag and handed it back to Therese as she slowly breathed the smoke out into the cold night air. She then hailed a taxi while Therese puffed on the cigarette and looked on in silent admiration. A yellow cab turned the corner and came to a stop beside Carol and Therese. They got in without uttering a word. There was an unspoken agreement that Therese was returning to Carol’s apartment.  
In the cab, the silence continued. Therese put her left hand to her face to cover her mouth and clear her throat and returned it to the middle seat between herself and Carol. Turning her head slightly away from the cab window where she had been gazing, Carol placed her right hand by Therese’s on the middle seat and carefully settled her pinky finger Therese’s. Therese looked up sharply and Carol gave her a quick wink before turning her eyes back to look out the window. Therese felt the familiar blush flood her cheeks and she smiled coyly in the darkness of the cab.  
They arrived at a grand gothic revival style building before long and stepped out of the cab. The door to the opulent building was heavy and Carol had to lean her entire frame against it to open it. ‘Damn thing’, she muttered to herself. Inside the large palatial foyer, Therese suddenly began to feel out of her depth and felt her heart begin to quicken in her chest once again, as it had been earlier in the night. The grandiose staircase was to their left and Therese followed a step behind Carol up the first flight. Onto the second flight and Carol took Therese by the hand to lead her on. By the time they reached the third floor where Carol’s apartment was located, both were breathless. Carol unlocked the door without removing her hand from Therese’s and lead her through the doorway. Therese stood in awe of the beautiful but scarcely furnished apartment before her. Carol shut the door behind her and as soon as she heard the click of the lock she gently pulled Therese around and walked her carefully back up against the hallway wall. They embraced. Their cold cheeks pressed against one another. Therese felt herself rubbing and nuzzling her face gently against Carol’s cheek and neck, like a cat. She drew in the recognizable scent of Carol. Her scent overwhelmed her and she felt her head spin lightly. Carol took Therese’s face in her hands and whispered softly ‘My angel… flung out of space’. These hauntingly familiar words brought hot tears to Therese’s eyes. Thoughts rushed back to Waterloo and the last time Carol had whispered those words to her and the tears began to cascade down Therese’s face. Carol kissed the droplets away carefully and smoothed Therese’s new hairdo behind her ears. Therese couldn’t bear it anymore. She leaned upward and kissed Carol’s mouth hard. Carol began to remove Therese’s coat and scarf without breaking the connection at their lips. She dropped them to the floor before removing her own. Therese felt Carol’s hands on her neck and gently she parted them from their kiss. She stared deeply into Therese’s eyes.  
‘Take me to bed’, said Carol


End file.
